The story of 12
by Rinjai
Summary: A young man surrounded by death who is chosen to become god but only if he can defeat 11 others who are after the same goal. Will he overcome his fears of taking another human's life or will his flame burn out? (SYOC Inside) may change from T to M
1. Chapter 1

"Ketaru, are you ready to continue our conversation?" the figure asked from his chair.

It was strange. I have had this dream for the fourth night in a row, but for some reason it seemed like the large figure, which liked to be called Deus Ex, remembered what we talked about last night.

"If I recall, we talked about your late mother, correct?" Deus said calmly.

I stood, moving my hand through my long black hair, sighing, not really wishing to talk about her, but this was just a dream, so what choice did I have?

"Yeah, and how she died," I replied, cringing at the thought.

"I understand that you wish that she could come back, but only god can control life and death," Deus sighed.

I finally lost my temper and started to shout and the purple-robed figure in disgust.

"How on Earth would you know how I felt?! This is just a goddam dream which means that none of this crap is real!" I continued to shout.

Deus slowly turned to me with an expression that I could describe as one deep sorrow and said something that shook me to the core.

"I never said that this was a dream," Deus spoke in a low tone.

There were millions of thoughts racing through my head, but I could only say one.

"W-what are you?" I asked shakily.

"I am the god of your world, and I'm slowly dying, so I have chosen you along with eleven others to compete in a competition to become god," Deus said calmly.

"But, why me, and what do you mean by 'competition'?" I shouted.

"You have nothing to lose and everything to gain, so take this. It will be your lifeline to this game," Deus said handing me a cell phone in his large hand.

Then, he said something that chilled me to my bones.

"If you die, no one will remember you, and in this competition, it is kill or be killed," Deus said firmly, and slowly faded from my view.

I awoke in a cold sweat, vividly remembering the dream that I'd just had, but as I raised my hand, I could feel cold metal. I quickly looked at the thing in my palm, visibly shaking with fear as I saw the exact phone that Deus had given me in my dream.

I cautiously examined the phone, noticing that the only real defining trait was the number three on the back. That, and the fact that it was an old flip phone. As I opened the phone and as it flickered to life, the first thing that I noticed were the words across the screen—'Diary Holder No.3: Obituary Diary'. As I was pondering the use of the diary, the doorbell rang and I suddenly remembered that my driver's license should come today. I quickly threw on a pair of jeans and a shirt with a skull on it and ran down stairs.

As I opened the door, I was greeted by my mail carrier who had a small package and an envelope for me. I signed for the items then, suddenly, the number three phone buzzed in my pocket and I quickly pulled it out and gasped when I read the message 'Jin Karasu died aged 34, stabbed to death by a mugger late tonight.'

I slowly said the name out loud without thinking. "Jin Karasu."

Suddenly, my mailman stopped and looked at me. "How did you know my name?" he asked.

I panicked, realizing that this was the same man that my text was talking about and I hastily responded.

"O-oh. You must have told me one day and it just came back to me," I replied with a weary smile, grabbing my mail.

"Well, hey. Thanks for remembering my name," he said with own smile and walked off.

I pushed my thoughts regarding the strange experience back into the recesses of my mind and quickly rushed into the kitchen to open the mail.

As I opened the envelope, I was ecstatic to see that it was my driver's license and gave it the once over.

LN: Fudo

FN: Ketaru

Age: 18

Sex: Male

Hair: Black

Eyes: Brown

Height: 6' 3"

Weight: 185 lb

I kept looking it over with a huge smile, knowing that it would open up a whole new world of possibilities, but I slowly turned my attention to the package, biting the piercing on my lip, wondering where it came from this time, but I definitely knew who sent it.

As I looked at the return address, I noticed that it was from Taiwan this time and wondered what my estranged father had sent me this time. When I opened the box, I saw that it was a tiny sculpture in the shape of a ram climbing a hill side, and attached to the head of the animal was a note in my father's hastily-scribbled handwriting.

'Hey, Ketaru. I just visited this great little place in Puzi, Taiwan, that had these fabulous little sculptures and I knew that you would love this one, so I hope that you enjoy it. Love Dad.'

I crumpled up the note and tossed it into the wastebasket, wondering why he kept sending me these things even though we hadn't seen each other face to face for three years. Not since Mom had died.

I carefully lifted the ram out of the box and placed it on the kitchen table, staring at it for a few seconds, then left to prepare for the day ahead.

As I grabbed my backpack, all I could think was about that strange text that I got earlier and how my mailman had the exact same name, but I disregarded it and headed out the door.

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**A/N: So, I hope that you like the start and this is the first time I've ever written in first person, so I would love feedback on it, but it's now time for you to help. I need 10 OC's for this story. They will all have a few chapters for themselves, explaining not only their backstory, but their fights, as well, so I will post this OC submission on my profile so that you can copy it from there.**

**Name: Preferably Japanese, but if it's different, tell me why.**

**Age: Can be just about anything from a teenager to the most resourceful four year old in the world.**

**Gender: Male or Female.**

**Personality: Do they feel bad about killing someone or do they take pleasure in it? Oh, and please no Yuno's.**

**Appearance: From clothing to hair color, give me all of it.**

**Backstory: Preferably dark, because they have nothing left to lose and everything to gain from this.**

**Diary Ability/Name: Think about their job, relationship with others and personality for this one.**

**Number you would like: 1-12 excluding 3 and 5**

**Extra: Did you think of something else? Include it here.**


	2. A chance encounter

**A/N: I'm still looking for OC's, but for now, I will update with what I've got.**

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As I left my house, I was met with the cold air of late fall and the crunch of dead leaves underfoot. This was my favorite time of the year, because everything was changing from the trees losing their leaves to the days that would grow shorter and, finally, how people would act. I always found it interesting how everyone would slow down or speed up just to match the seasons, but no matter what time of year it was, I would always move at the same speed.

I sighed, shaking myself from my thoughts, and headed off down the road to the cram school that I went to every day. Even though everyone else was out enjoying their break, I had to trudge through the cold and sit in a classroom filled with other poor souls whose parents had stuck them there, but it was worth it because I was always able to see my two friends halfway there and we would walk together, and with that, I picked up my pace.

When I reached the end of my street, I was greeted by two smiling faces, one from a young girl who was roughly an inch taller than me with dark blue eyes and raven black hair which was tied back. She was dressed in a simple brown school uniform complete with a skirt and a blazer while the other was a boy around the same age and height as me who had short, dirty blond hair which was obviously was dyed his black colour and he had light, sea green eyes which were kept behind a pair of large glasses. He wore a pair of tight blue jeans and a simple green jacket over a black shirt with a butterfly design on the front.

I greeted both of my friends with a smile, calling out their names and rushing to their sides.

"Yo, Imaru. Talia. Good to see that you're both doing well today," I said, a bit out of breath.

"The same for yourself. Did you get some good sleep for once?" the girl—Talia—asked.

"Better than sleep. I finally got my licence in the mail this morning," I replied, grinning whilst grabbing my wallet.

"Ooh. Let me see," Imaru said, smiling.

"Wait your turn, Imi," Talia said, mocking Imaru whilst taking the wallet from my hands.

"Jeez, Talia. You know that I hate that name," Imaru said, pouting but getting closer so that he could see the ID.

The two looked at the picture for a while before bursting out in laughter and giggles, making me quickly grab the wallet back from them.

"Oh, jeez. The face that you made is priceless." Imaru said through his laughter.

"Well, it's a good thing that you dropped the whole emo look, as well," Talia said, wiping away fake tears.

I looked down at the picture once again, realising that maybe I was too excited to realise the awkwardness of the photo. It looked like I was on some kind of high or something, my eyes mostly glazed over from the blinding flash that they give you no warning of, plus my hair was incredibly messy from my hat that I had to take off.

"OK. Maybe I'm not as photogenic as I thought," I said, giving a small chuckle whilst putting my wallet away.

"That's a bit of a understatement there, Ket," Talia said, turning to face me with a smile.

"So, whats new with you two?" I asked, trying to move the conversation away from my embarrassing photo.

"Nothing too interesting, even to note," Imaru sighed, looking dejected.

"By the way, what time is it?" Talia asked, looking for her phone.

I subconsciously pulled out the phone that I had woken up with, flipping it open. When I did, the text from this morning was still there, making me remember what had happened earlier that day. I could hear Talia's voice in the back of my head, but it sounded like it was muffled as if it came from an old speaker. I had to physically shake myself from my stupor, turning my gaze to my puzzled friends.

"I'm sorry. What were you saying, Talia?" I said, still in a slight trance.

"I wanted to know why you have such a old cell with you," Talia replied, sighing a bit, putting her hands on her hips.

"Oh... I... Uh... I just got it as a gift in the mail from someone... Yeah..." I replied hesitantly, for some reason thinking that it might be best to keep how I really obtained the phone hidden for now.

Both Imaru and Talia gave me disgruntled looks, but said nothing on the matter and we walked the rest of the way in silence. When we finally reached the school, I sighed, looking at the rather tall building with its monogram on the front and beginning to walk towards the long flight of stairs that I had to walk up get to my class.

"Hey, so can we meet up at the café after school? I wanted to talk to you guys about something," Imaru spoke up, clutching his arm rather tightly.

"I'm game. Say, around 3:30, maybe?" I replied with a small smile.

"Oh... Uh... Sure, Imi. I have to stay for a while later, so can I meet you guys there?" Tali said, a bit concerned, but didn't press the matter.

"Good. I will even treat everyone to some parfait," Imaru said, relaxing a bit. Then, he headed off into the school with the two of us close behind.

As we entered, I saw the first of many large flights of stairs that I had to ascend to get to my class and I gave my friends a quick wave a goodbye before I started to make my way up. As I walked, I pulled out my phone again, looking at the text that I had gotten earlier that day, shaking my head in disbelief at how outrageous it sounded. I just met a guy and I got a text about him dying; it just sounded too strange. As I passed a group of girls, the phone in my hands buzzed, another text appearing.

**_'Miyu Edi died at age 17. She fell down a flight of stairs at Ketako Academy, snapping her neck.'_**

As I red the text in horror, a girl came rushing past me in a sprint. I quickly shot my hand out, trying to grab the girl's arm, shouting, "Miyu! Wait!"

The girl turned to face me and I could see her feet slip out from underneath her and I quickly grabbed the back of her shirt, holding onto her as she almost fell, her left shoe coming off in the proces.

"Gah! Jeez! What the hell was that for?!" the girl cried out as I pulled her back from the stairs.

"You could have slipped and fallen! You could have died!" I shouted, biting my lip as the words left my mouth.

The girl looked at me, then down at her shoe lying at the bottom of the stairs, gulping, realizing what could have happened. She inched back from me, her eyes wide in terror, dark thoughts obviously running through her head.

"Are you OK, Miyu? Do you want me to walk you to the nurse's office?" I asked, worried, seeing the girl's nerves.

"N-no... I'm fine... Thank you for... saving me..." Miyu stammered, still worried.

"Well, then, I need to get going, or I will be late for my class," I replied, turning back to the stairs, sighing, remembering how much I had to climb.

"Wait! Hold on! You know my name, but I don't know yours!" Miyu called out, making me stop right in my tracks, cursing myself for making the same mistake that I did that morning.

"I must have been in one of your classes at some point," I stammered, trying to rush up the stairs.

"Hey! Slow down, will you?!" Miyu called out, following me up the stairs at a blinding speed.

As I reached the top of the stairs, the girl was standing there in front of me with her arms crossed. I blinked a few times, wondering how on Earth she got there, but then I noticed that it was the first time that I had really looked at the girl. She was rather short with her hair a light blonde and in a long braid, going all the way down to her chest while her eyes were a stunning golden brown which complemented her tanned skin tone. She wore a bright pink skirt dress with a floral design on the front and white stockings with small, black dress shoes. I could have sworn that she looked like a idol that close up.

"I will let you pass, but only if you tell me your name, OK?" Miyu panted, but her eyes were determined.

"Fine. It's Ketaru Fudo. If you want, just call me Ket," I sighed, pushing past the girl.

"Well, thank you again, Ket. I think that I owe you my life," Miyu said with a small smile.

"I'm sorry, but I can't waste any more time. I still have three more flights of stairs before I get to my class," I replied, trying to get her to leave me alone.

"Oh. So, that means that you're in art studies, as well?" Miyu asked, catching me off guard.

"Yeah. What about it?" I grumbled, Miyu's constant badgering starting to get on my nerves.

"It's closed for today. The teacher is out sick with a sudden cold," Miyu replied, walking over to me, a skip in her step.

"Great. That means that I walked up here for nothing," I said, my spirits sinking.

"Hey. It wasn't for nothing. You saved me, or did you forget, already?" Miyu huffed, putting her hands on her hips, much like a cross child.

_'I'm starting to regret that,' _I thought, making my way back down the stairs that I came from, Miyu close behind.

"So, since you don't have a class any more, wanna come hang out with me?" Miyu chirped up, tugging at my sleeve slightly.

I gave the girl a look of pure exhaustion. Just spending the little time that I had already with her made me feel like I had aged by three years. But, I shrugged and, having nothing better to do, I gave a small nod which sent Miyu into a small giggling fit, almost looking like she was going to jump up and hug me.

"Oh, good. I know this small arcade on the west side of town and it's right next to a great clothing shop which has these cute dresses. Oh. There's also..." Miyu chattered on and eventually I toned her out and pulled out the cell phone again, flipping it open to look at its text again, but I stopped mid-step, my gaze fixed on my phone. The text about Miyu that I had received earlier had vanished.

'Did I imagine the text? No. Otherwise, I wouldn't have known Miyu's name.' My mind raced for answers, trying to make sense of it until my shirt sleeve was tugged, snapping me out of my trance, and I looked over at Miyu who had a concerned expression on her face.

"Um... Ket... Are you OK? You spaced out there for a second," Miyu asked worriedly, her hands fidgeting with her braid.

I looked around and noticed that we were outside the school and heading towards the gate entrance and sighed, noticing that I probably had worried the poor girl and turned to look at her.

"Heh. Sorry. I have this strange habit of losing myself in thought sometimes. It's my bad for not warning you," I said, trying my best to play it off as if it was no big deal.

"Did you even listen to a word that I said?" Miyu asked, becoming more relaxed.

"I... Uh... Sure... Something about an arcade?" I replied, giving a halfhearted laugh.

"Fine. Let's just get to the station, already," Miyu sighed, walking ahead of me at a brisk pace.

Not wanting to make her angry, I quickly followed, trying my best to keep up with the rather fast girl. When we arrived at the station, I noticed how very few people were there, but I played it off as the fact that it was a work day and quickly joined Miyu who was about to board a train.

"So, where are we going, again?" I asked hesitantly.

"I told you that we're going to the west end of Minatako. There's something that I wanted to show you there," Miyu grumbled, taking a seat.

I quietly sat beside her, still wondering about the strange text that I had gotten, but I pushed it out of my mind and started to close my eyes, settling in for the long trip. As I opened my eyes slowly, I noticed that I was no longer in the train car, but the same room from my dream the night before and I looked up, seeing the massive figure—Deus—in his chair again, his hands linked together as if he was in deep thought. Then, his large form moved, noticing me.

"Ah. Ketaru. You have returned again, I see," Deus said slowly, as if the act of speaking was hard.

"What do you mean by 'returned'? This is a dream, so there's no place to return," I replied, confused.

"Don't you remember, young one? The last time that you visited, I revealed the reason for you being here," Deus sighed.

"All I know is that I got a strange cell phone and you told me that I had to kill people," I shouted at the figure, my face turning red.

"Then, I will explain in detail. I am the god of this world. I have watched this world grow and fall throughout history, but now I am dying and I fear that, if this world is left without a god, it will perish and everyone who inhabits it die, as well," Deus said in a tone that sent a shiver down my spine.

"But, why such a competition? Can't you just pick the right choice?" I asked, panicked.

"The game has started and I can no longer influence it, for my job now is to hold this world together long enough for the winner to be chosen," Deus replied slowly.

At that moment, I noticed that we weren't alone. A small girl who looked as if she was only 8 at the most was hiding behind Deus. Her attire reminded me of something from a circus and her skin tone reminded me of people from advertisements, sponsoring far off places with white beaches and the bright Sun, but the oddest thing was her light purple hair and her small tail.

"Um... Who is that?" I asked, pointing towards the small girl who flinched when I made notice of her.

"This is Muru Muru. She is my assistant for this game and will interact with the players," Deus replied, a hand pushing the girl from the shadows.

"I-it's a pleasure to finally meet you, and if you wish, you can just call me 'Muru'," the girl said quietly, bowing in the process.

"I need to know one thing, though. Why me of all people?" I asked, looking down at my feet.

"I can answer that for you, Mr. Fudo," Muru said with a smile.

"You were chosen for the relationships that you have or, in this case, will have," the small girl continued.

"Wait. What do you mean by that?" I asked, panicked, but neither of them replied.

I was about to rush over to Deus and the girl, Muru, but my vision started to shake and the pair slowly disappeared.

As I opened my eyes, I could see that I was still on the train and Miyu was shaking my shoulder with a annoyed look on face.

"Ket, this is our stop. Wake up. You look like a bum," Miyu grumbled, shaking me a bit more violently this time.

"Gah. OK. I'm awake now. No more shaking, please," I mumbled, taking the girl's hands off me.

As I stood and stretched my arms, the train quickly slowed down until it came to a stop and the doors swished open, revealing a large group of people who were patiently waiting to board the train. When Miyu and I exited our car and headed further into town, it felt as if I was being watched, but I just passed it off as nerves from being in a place that I didn't frequent.

"Well, here's the place," Miyu said, pointing to a rather small building which was adorned with a banner that read 'Couple's Sale!' in bright red lettering.

"W-what the hell is this?" I stammered, wondering why the girl had brought me there.

"Just relax, will ya? It's just a sweet shop that's having a sale," Miyu sighed, walking into the store as I followed close behind.

As I entered the shop, a small bell chimed, but then I was suddenly taken aback by the bright pink walls which were covered in pictures of small, cute animals, all with name plates under them, reading things like 'Pookie' and other gag-worthy names. I saw a smiling young woman behind the shop's counter wearing a deep red apron and a small yellow hat which kept her blonde hair from covering her eyes. Miyu smiled at the girl and then held up two fingers, then took a seat, beckoning me over.

"So, I take it that you've been here before," I stated, walking over to the table and taking a seat, myself.

"Sure. Dozens of times. They have great coffee here which goes well with their cakes," Miyu replied, relaxing a bit in her seat.

I was about to ask another question, but the woman from earlier came over with a small plate with a piece of elaborately decorated cake. As she sat it down in front of us, she turned to Miyu, probably wondering if she needed anything else.

"That will be all, Yuzu," Miyu said without even looking at the girl and took a small bite of her cake.

"As you wish, Ms. Edi," Yuzu said, giving a small bow before walking off.

I was astonished. The way that Miyu acted when we first met seemed completely different from her personality at that moment.

"Close your mouth unless you want me to feed you," Miyu said with a small laugh.

"Sorry. I was just a bit shocked, is all. You seemed like a different person just now," I stammered to regain some composure.

"Oh. That. Well, my father owns the place, so I guess that they just want to make a good impression," Miyu mumbled, taking another bite of her cake.

I probably had my mouth open again because Miyu slowly started to inch her forkful of cake closer to me, but I quickly shut it again, shaking myself out of the trance.

"Jeez. You really do have a problem with spacing out, don't you?" Miyu asked, obviously a bit annoyed.

"Yeah. Again, I'm sorry about that, but I'm just trying to take it all in," I replied hesitantly, trying not to be like a deer in the headlights.

"It's fine, but can we talk about this later and just enjoy our cake?" Miyu said, sighing.

As I ate my cake with Miyu, I started to wonder what she was hiding from me and if this was all some kind of act, but suddenly, the number 3 phone buzzed in my pocket and I slowly pulled it out, gritting my teeth, wondering what I was about to read.

**_'Ketaru Fudo was stabbed to death by diary holder number 7 atop a roof.'_**

I looked at my phone in shock. Not once did it ever say my name before this. I quickly looked around the room, trying spot anyone suspicious until Miyu spoke up.

"Hey, are you OK? It looks like you've seen a ghost or something," she said, concerned.

"No. It's just... I... Uh..." I was about to reply when I heard the small bell chime with the door shutting close behind it and my head whipped around to see a small girl who was much younger than myself with short, curly black hair. She was dressed in a blue and white sailor uniform complete with a large bow which was wrapped around her waist. As she sat down, I tried to calm myself by thinking that there was no way that such a young girl could be a killer, but then I saw her pull out a small flip phone from her pocket with a very distinctive black 7 across the front.

"Huh. That's odd. Not many people come in here, especially at this time of day," Miyu said, looking at the young girl, herself.

"Maybe she's from around here," I mumbled, keeping my gaze fixed on the girl as she ordered from the waitress, smiling as she did so.

I knew that I had to get out of that place. Otherwise, I might have gotten hurt, or worse, got someone else hurt, but as I watched her a little more, I could see that she was humming a tune, kicking her small legs under the table. I tried to put my mind at ease, thinking that my phone could be wrong or that she just had a phone with a seven on it for no reason, but as the waitress, Yuzu, gave the girl a slice of cake, she looked over and locked eyes with me. Gone were the humming and the smile. What replaced them were the eyes of a hunter, cold and merciless, and a slow, crooked grin crept along her face.

_'T-this has to be a dream! No! A nightmare! I-it has to be!' _my mind screamed, trying my best to not bolt from my seat and run.

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**A/N: Holy cow, did this take forever, but I'm glad that I took my time with this. But, anyway, now that it's done, the real story can start, but I wanted to say that I'm still accepting OC's, so if you want to submit one, just send one over and I can take a look at it. But for now, if you liked the story, write a review, or if you want to keep your thoughts between us, send a PM.**

**Thanks for reading.**

**Rinjai**


	3. The three sisters

I stared at the girl across the room, her eyes fixated on my table, constantly switching between myself and Miyu, and that's when I realised that she didn't know who held the diary.

"Hey, Ket, is something interesting about that girl or is it something behind her?" Miyu asked, annoyed.

"Oh, it's nothing. It's just me spacing out again," I replied with a half-hearted laugh, turning back to face my dining partner.

"Whatever. Oh. I wanted to ask why you take art studies," Miyu said with a smile.

"I take it because of my mother. She was a very talented sculptor, so I thought that I might have some talent for it, as well," I said, sighing, looking down at my uneaten cake.

"Well, then, you will have to show some of her work to me sometime. We can call it payment for the cake," Miyu chuckled.

"Wha- Hey! I thought that this was your treat!" I said, flustered.

Miyu just replied with a shrug and a cocky grin, but that's when I noticed that the little girl had vanished. I franticly looked around the room, trying to find her. Then, I saw the tail end of her bow slipping past the door to the kitchen.

_Crap. She's going for the waitress, first,_ I thought, and quickly rose from my chair.

"Hey, Ket, where are you going?" Miyu asked, confused.

"I-I just wanted to talk to the chef for a second. I'll be right back," I hastily replied, making my way towards the kitchen door.

As I made my way towards the door, I heard a loud clatter and hastened my pace, rushing inside. When I entered the kitchen, I saw the small girl standing over the waitress, Yuzu, with a very large kitchen knife and I panicked, grabbing the closest thing to me, which happened to be a small plate, and flung it towards her, completely missing her and smashing into the wall next to her.

"I-I'm the one you're looking for!" I half-stammered, half-shouted.

The small girl turned around with a deadly gaze and a scowl across her face, but as she saw me, the anger on her face turned into a sadistic smile.

"Looks like the prey this time is rather stupid. Come here so I can put you out of your misery," the girl said, slowly walking forwards, swinging the knife back and forth.

I started to panic, realizing that I had no weapon of my own, and then I noticed a small door, probably leading to the outside. I just knew that it would be better than staying in this small kitchen and made a dash for it. As I burst through the door, I found myself in a alleyway, facing the wall of another building, and dashed down it, trying to get out onto the street. Behind me, I could hear the door of the café slam open again, but I knew that I couldn't look back.

_OK, Ket. Think. You're being chased by a psychotic little girl who has a knife and is trying to kill you. Crap. This isn't normal. I don't know what to do._ My thoughts rushed through my head as I tried to think of anything that could help me.

As I rushed into the street, I saw a large group of people who were huddled around some kind of shop and I knew that hiding in a large group was probably my best chance of survival. When I made my way through the crowd, I saw what they were looking at. It was one of those lottery spinners and the grand prize was a trip for two at a hot spring.

"Hey. You there. Young man. Care to test your luck?" the man behind the counter asked, pointing at me.

"No... Uh... I'm fine, really..." I stammered, out of breath.

"Come on. You could win this fabulous prize," the man boasted, slapping the poster of the springs with the back of his hand.

"O-OK, then..." I reluctantly stepped up, trying not to cause a scene and attract some unwanted attention.

I cranked the wheel, only turning it slightly, trying to get it over with, and as the container stopped, a small golden ball fell out, and gasps could be heard behind me.

"Looks like we have a grand winner!" the man shouted, ringing a bell and then handing me two tickets.

"T-thanks..." I said, taking them, just wanting to get out soon as possible.

"This great trip to the relaxing hot springs is perfect for you and your girlfriend," the man said with a huge smile.

"Wha-what girlfriend?" I stuttered. Then, I slowly turned, looking down, and saw the little girl from the café with a pleasant smile on her face.

I panicked, rushing from the crowd, the girl skipping after me, the fake smile still on her face. I kept running, trying my best to put distance between me and the psycho girl, but every time I looked back, all I saw was her, and she would give me a small wave as if it was just a game that she was playing like a cat toying with a small mouse.

_OK, Ket. If you're going to survive, you have to find a weapon to protect yourself. _I focused my mind on trying to survive, looking for any building that could help me but, sadly, it seemed like I had ended up in a market district.

_Flower shop? No. Maybe the bakery. Can't. Too many people. Wait! There!_ I stopped and looked up at a building, seeing that it was under construction and probably devoid of people. I gave a quick glance behind me and I couldn't see the girl, but I knew that she was probably close behind me, so I silently dashed into the building.

When I got in, it was darker than I had expected and I opened the Number 3 phone for a bit of extra light. The entry of my death was still there, almost like a taunt that was urging me to panic, but I did my best to calm myself and tried to find a weapon to defend myself with. I eventually settled on a decent-sized pipe, picking it up and giving it a few swings to test it.

"Careful there, mister. You don't want to hurt someone with that, do you?" a small voice called out from behind me, causing me to freeze.

I slowly turned around, and there was the small girl, still holding the knife, playing with it absentmindedly, almost like someone would do with a pencil. The girl slowly moved towards me a small smile on her face.

"St-stay back. I don't want to hurt you if I don't have to," I swung the pipe nervously, making the girl stop in her tracks.

"But, if you don't hurt me, then how will you survive?" the girl said, pointing her knife at me.

"W-what the hell is wrong with you?! Just stay back!" I gave a few warning swings to see if she would react, but to no avail.

"I'm just doing what this phone and my sisters tell me to do." She responded pulling the 7th phone from her pocket.

"Y-your sisters?" I hesitantly asked, trying to back up further.

"Oh, where are my manners. My name is Raion Hikazua the youngest sister, and I have been chosen to be the 7th diary holder of this game," the girl said with a smile, giving a small curtsy.

I tried to relax a little, trying to assure myself that this girl was simply misguided. That was until I saw her face twitch and a dark grimace replaced the once-warm smile.

"My name is Raion Yamizu. I'm the eldest sister," Raion said in a deeper tone, her eyes looking down at her feet.

"W-what do you mean by 'sister'?" I questioned as I felt the entire mood shift, just like what happened at the diner.

As I tried to study the girl once again, her face twitched and she arched her back, standing straight up, and her eyes were no longer sullen or happy, but cold, like that of a hunter or a predator making eye contact with its prey right before the kill.

"Finally, you have me, Raion Mizu, the middle sister. I hope that we can have some fun with you, boy," Raion said, looking me up and down, her eyes seeming to bore right through me.

"W-what the fuck is going on? You're crazy," I stammered, looking at the strange person in front of me.

"Well, you now that I've introduced myself and my sisters, may I ask that you do the same?" Raion said, her eyes darting around, assessing the room.

_C-crap. This is bad. She's blocking the exit and I feel like she's just toying with me._ I looked at the door behind the girl, seeing that her body was squarely between me and it.

"Hey, my sister asked you a question, you little shit. Answer it or I'm going to have to kill you," Raion—probably Yamizu—shouted, snapping me out of my train of thought.

"K-Ketaru. Ketaru Fudo," I stammered back.

"Well, I hope you don't mind if we call you Ket. It's just so much easier to say than that long name," Raion said with a crooked smile.

"I-if you must," I replied looking around and seeing a staircase.

"Well, Ket, you can pick which of us gets to kill you. Me, or one of my sisters," Raion said, inching ever so closer.

I knew that it was now or never to make a break for it and, seeing how I probably wouldn't get past her, I had to go for the stairs.

"I... uh... don't think I really want anything like... that!" With my last word, I tossed the pipe that I was holding and made a dash for the stairs.

I heard a scream, but I didn't look back as I raced up the stairway, desperately trying to put any amount of distance between the psychotic girl and me. As I ascended the stairs, I could hear footsteps behind me and the scrape of the knife against the wall getting closer with each step that I took. My breath was running out and I could tell that, if I didn't find a place to hide, I would be dead, and that was when I saw the end of the stairs which led to a door.

_C-crap. I can't go back down. I've just got to hope that it's safe, there,_ I thought as I panted, rushing up the last few steps.

As I burst through the door, I was almost swept back by a strong wind and, as I regained my balance, I saw that I was on the roof of the building and that it was probably late afternoon by them. I looked around desperately for somewhere to hide, but it was just a barren rooftop with a few tarps. There was nothing to hide in or behind.

_T-this is bad. Even if I call for help, no one can get up here in time. _My mind raced for any idea, but I was coming up with nothing.

I eventually decided that putting myself near the door in the hopes that I could perhaps get the drop on her would be the best idea, so I pressed my body as close to the wall as I could and held my breath. As I waited and squeezed my eyes shut, I could hear the footsteps getting closer accompanied by heavy breathing until the door swung open and Raion rushed out, looking incredibly angry.

"Wh-where is that little shit?!" she gasped, looking around, and I could see a small trail of blood running down her forehead.

"C-calm down, Yamizu. We will find him eventually," Raion said, seemingly talking to herself.

"But, he hurt you. He hurt all of us, Mizu!" she screeched, waving the knife around.

"I said quiet!" Raion shouted, stamping her foot down.

"Yamizu, Mizu, I'm tired, and my head hurts. Plus, it's getting dark out here. You both know how much I hate the dark," the girl whined. It was probably Hikazu.

"Don't worry, sister. Once we kill this prey, we can go home," Raion sighed, trying to calm herself.

I couldn't see much because the door was blocking most of my view, but I could tell that the girl wasn't standing too far from the entrance, making it hard to get past her.

"I really don't want to chase you all day, so come out and die, will you?" Raion called out, stepping forwards a bit.

_Yes. Just a little more. Then, I can make a run for it._ I prepared myself to make a mad dash past her and down the stairs.

As Raion ever so slowly walked forwards, I gathered all of my courage and clenched my fists, but then she stopped dead in her tracks and pulled out her phone. She looked at it for a second, then slowly turned, her eyes locking with mine.

"Found you," Raion said in a low voice, slowly walking towards me.

_W-what the hell?! How did she know that I was here?! _I panicked, my mind trying to find answers, but coming up with nothing.

"Now, don't try to run. You have nowhere else to go," Raion said with wicked glee.

She was right. Where I was standing only put me about three feet away from the edge of the building, and from the fact that I could see the street far below, it was too high to jump from. I tried to look for an opening, but I knew that, if I tried to force myself past her, I would only get hurt or worse.

"L-look, I don't want to hurt you, b-but I will if I have to," I shouted at the girl.

"Ha. You hurt me? You must be joking. Unless you can change the future, this is your fate," Raion laughed, pointing her knife towards me, only about a foot away from me.

C-change the future? Could it be that easy? My mind went blank and I slowly took out the phone, looking at it.

'Ketaru Fudo was stabbed to death by diary holder number 7 atop a roof.'

My mind flashed back to when I was at my school where Miyu was predicted to die. Had I really stopped it or was it just a coincidence that she was there? Could I really trust this phone?

I snapped out of my trance just in time to see Raion lunge at me with the knife. I tried to sidestep it, but she slashed my left side and I could feel the stinging pain and wooziness as blood came from the wound.

"You know, that habit of yours is going to get you killed one of these days," Raion said mockingly and I could see my blood trickle down from the tip of the knife.

"T-that really hurt..." I stammered, clutching my side, my shirt beginning to stain with blood.

"Heh. Don't worry. I will make this next one count," Raion stated, making a quick dash towards me, her knife outstretched.

I knew that it was then or never. I quickly turned around and made a dash for the edge.

"W-what the hell are you doing?! There's nowhere to run, you fool!" the girl shouted, quickly gaining on me.

"This isn't how I die!" I shouted back before I flung myself off the building.

My body turned in the air and I could see Raion who was still on the rooftop, glaring at me, but it didn't matter. I looked towards the sky, a brilliant orange and red from the setting sun, and I knew that, if I died there, it would be a perfect final image for me to see, but then I heard a loud crash followed by screams and my body was instantly was consumed by pain, so much that I couldn't even scream as it hurt so badly, but then I saw tiny pink petals float down around me.

"T-the flower shop," I meekly said before I passed out.

* * *

**So hey there, it's been a bit but I finally finished this chapter and don't worry the three sisters will show up again and if you're wondering what her ability was well that will come latter. Also this lovely young lady is the OC of ****Fuyukaze Mahou**** so thank you. I am also open to my OCs still have a few slots open for the final diary holders.**

**Anyways I'm sorry for the long wait and I know that this chapter is a bit short compared to the last one but I had a lot on my plate at the time but I assure you that the next one will be longer. So if you have comments or ideas, feel free to write a review or send me a PM, I always love to hear from my readers.**

**One more thing (Bonus points if you get that) The next few chapters will end the OC submission time. A player meeting will be held and I will describe the shadowy figures in some detail. I only decided that No.7 would be Raion because she seemed like a great starting person but that also means that I haven't picked anyone else so send in now if you want your shot to become a future diary holder.**

**Sincerely Rinjai **


	4. A broken body and a broken mind

My entire body felt as though it had been suspended, like nothing had any weight. When I tried to move my arms or legs, they wouldn't respond, and it felt like my body and mind had been separated, one looking down on the other, but I didn't know which one was looking down. I slowly opened my eyes, sound blaring around my head. It was a siren of some sort. I hazily looked around, seeing two people. Both seemed to be hunched over and shouting about something.

"Dammit! Come on, kid! Stay with us!" one of them shouted—a man, from what I could make out.

"How much longer 'til we get there?!" the other person shouted—a woman, this time.

"ETA, ten minutes!" another person shouted—someone that I couldn't see.

"OK. We're clo-… Crap! His BP dropped below thirty! Ready thirty CC's of acetaminophen and the crash cart, just in case!" the man shouted.

My vision went blurry and my hearing became muffled as I slowly drifted off into a hazy sleep. It all felt like a crazy nightmare. Again, I found myself in the room of Deus, the large figure in the center of room as imposing as ever, but he seemed to be preoccupied with something, or rather someone who seemed to consist of a mere shadowy outline.

"So, that is the prize for winning this game of yours?" the figure asked. He was definitely a man.

"Yes, and the title of 'god' for this world," Deus replied in his mellow tone.

"You keep making this more and more interesting, big guy," the figure laughed, and then, with a noise that sounded like a broken videotape, he disappeared.

Deus sighed heavily, his large hand rubbing his temple, and it seemed as though he was under a lot of distress, but didn't seem to notice me.

"Hey, kid. What's up?" the girl, Muru, spoke from behind me, catching me off guard.

"W-where did you come from?" I said, spinning around, trying to keep my voice low so as to not disturb Deus.

"I think the better question is 'where did you come from'?" Muru replied with a cat-like grin.

"What do you mean? I just appeared here," I responded in a loud whisper, confused by her question.

"Nuh-uh. No one gets in here unless the big guy lets them in," Muru answered in a huff, crossing her arms, a bit confused by my response.

"T-then, how did I g-" I was about to ask something else, but my eyes suddenly shot open, looking around desperately, a shooting pain in the back of my head.

I looked around the area I was in. It seemed to be a normal hospital room with a number of beds, some filled with other people, some not. Next to me was a simple stand with a vase of flowers and a small chair next to it, and I was dressed in a hospital gown. My head ached and my mind raced, trying to figure out what had happened. The last thing I remembered was the vehicle, which I guessed was the ambulance, but then I blacked out and woke up in Deus's room. Now, I was in the hospital.

"Gah… This makes no freaking sense…" I muttered to myself, placing a hand over my eyes.

I tried to move, but pain shot through me so quickly that I had barely anytime to stop before I let out an ear-piercing scream, which attracted a few nurses who came running over with frantic looks on their faces. They quickly got me back into the position that I was in before and upped the dose of whatever I was on. One of the nurses stayed after the others had left. She looked like a bulldog in pink scrubs, but I thought it best not to mention that.

"Looks like you're finally awake," the nurse said, her arms crossed.

"W-where am I?" I stammered, still reeling from the pain, and a bit lightheaded from the drugs.

"Shumon hospital," the nurse said gruffly, checking the medical equipment.

"I don't understand. How did I end up here?" I asked, a bit more clear-headed.

"After you jumped off a roof, the EMT's brought you here," the nurse said, picking up my chart.

I was about to say that that was wrong. I didn't jump off the roof. A psychotic middle-schooler chased me up there with a knife, and the only way I could avoid getting stabbed was to jump. Then, it hit me as to how crazy that sounded, so I just lay back in my bed with a heavy sigh.

"You've got a broken arm and leg from the stunt you pulled. You're lucky that you're even here right now," the nurse said, sighing.

I was about to close my eyes and nod off until I realised that the numbered phone was missing. Panic struck me. What did Deus say about it? Something about it being my lifeline? After the fight I had with Raion, I knew that it was safer to have it close by, but I knew that, if I freaked out, the nurse wouldn't give it to me.

"D-do you happen to know where my phone is?" I asked the nurse politely, a bit worried that something had happened to it.

"Children these days and their phones… Can't even throw them off the roof without them worrying about it…" she grumbled, walking away, hopefully to grab the phone.

I looked over myself again and noticed that I had two casts, one around my left leg and the other around my right arm. When I tried moving them, pain shot through me, which probably would have been a lot worse if I hadn't been drugged.

_Great. If someone attacks me, I can frighten them off with my polka dot gown,_ I thought, grimacing.

The nurse soon returned and handed me my phone with an odd look, and I could tell that it wasn't for the best.

"You've got a lot of people worried. Your phone has been buzzing nonstop," she sighed, then walked away.

I tried to think about why, but soon as I opened my phone, I understood what she had meant. It was flooded with texts, telling me about future deaths, patients dying, operations going wrong, and random people dying for no reason. My eyes raced over them as more and more texts flooded in until I couldn't take it anymore and had to snap it shut and stuff it under my pillow.

"T-this can't be happening. There's so much death here," I sighed, trying to close my eyes as my phone buzzed under my pillow.

As I tried to drift back to sleep, my mind kept going back to the texts on my phone. An old woman dying of cancer, a young man walking home tonight would get shot, and so many more. How could there be so much death? Then, something hit me. and I quickly pulled my phone back out again.

"Four hours… Sixteen hours… All of the deaths were within the range of twenty four hours…" I muttered to myself as I scrolled through the texts.

No matter how far I scrolled, it never changed. All of the deaths seemed to be set to occur within the range of twenty four hours. Luckily, none of them seemed to contain my name, like yesterday, or really affect me in some way. The thing that baffled me the most was how many there were appearing around here. I thought back to the previous ones that had appeared—the one about the mail carrier, the one about Miyu, and then, finally, about me.

"Gah… I thought I had something…" I grumbled to myself, snapping my phone shut.

As I lay there, watching the nurses and various doctors mill about, I tried to close my eyes for some much needed rest, but no matter how hard I tried, every time I closed my eyes, the image of the creepy girl filled my thoughts. Her almost innocent form and strange outfit, combined with her menacing glare the deadly knife that she held in her hand. I knew that there was no way that I was getting any sleep. At least, not for a while.

"Ketaru Fudo, you have some visitors," a nurse said, rousing me from my unpleasant thoughts.

I looked behind her and saw Imaru and Talia both looking incredibly worried. Well, more so Imaru. Talia had a very stern look on her face. I slowly remembered that I was supposed to meet them at the café, but had never gotten to it, much less even called them.

"Ket, are you OK?" Imaru said, coming to stand beside me, Talia still standing firm.

"Y-yeah. Sorry for missing our lunch date," I mumbled in reply.

"You wanna tell us what the hell you were thinking?" Talia said gruffly, stepping a bit closer.

"What do you mean? I just lost of track time," I said, a bit confused.

"Sure. Trying to kill yourself is losing track of time," Talia said, raising her voice.

I looked at her, stunned. What on Earth did she mean? Kill myself? I would have never have done that. Hell, I would never even think that. But, I slowly recalled what had led me to this point. I had saved a girl's life, then got into a deadly game of cat in mouse with a middle-schooler, all the while in the game to become some sort of 'god'. I guessed that, when the EMT's had found me, they just assumed that I had thrown myself off the building, which was, in part, true, but not really of my own accord.

"Ket, no matter what happens, you know that you can always talk with us," Imaru said in his calming tone.

"T-thanks for saying that," I replied half-heartedly, not really knowing what to say.

"We should let him rest, Talia," Imaru said quietly, walking back over to the young woman.

"Fine, but don't you go jumping off any more buildings," Talia replied, then gave me a concerned look.

"Wait! Imaru, you wanted to tell us something at the café, right?" I said quickly, suddenly remembering the promise that I made.

Imaru quickly stiffened at my question, and I could tell that he really didn't want the subject to come up, but he sighed and turned around.

"We can talk about it when you feel better, OK?" Imaru said with a weak smile.

I nodded, knowing that it was probably better to leave the conversation for later, and slowly rested my head back onto the pillow. I watched my friends walk away. Their stature told the whole story. Imaru's shoulders were slumped, and his feet dragged across the floor, while Talia was still a bit angry, her hand fidgeting with her long braid.

_How could I be such a freaking jerk to them?_ I thought, mentally kicking myself.

As I lay in the bed, the sun setting through the window, I couldn't close my eyes, because every time I did, flashbacks of the rooftop would jump straight into my mind—how the knife stung as it struck me, and the insane girl's smile as she saw me bleed. Most of all, it was the fall that haunted me most—how slowly it went, but then how quickly it ended with me crashing into the stand below. My phone buzzed again, and I dreaded what it would say, but I opened it all the same. Then, my eyes went wide and my mind blank.

"H-how…? Why here...?" I muttered to myself as I looked at the text.

_'Mari Gakusha is killed by Diary Holder number 5 through lethal injection.'_

My breath grew ragged as I started to hyperventilate and my mind started to panic. I had just gotten away from a Diary Holder only to end up in the clutches of another one, and to make matters worse, I had no idea who it could be.

_Breathe, Ket. Try to figure things out using what information you have. Lethal injection means an overdose of medication, so it was a doctor. No. Wait. It could be a nurse, or someone bringing their own needle from home,_ I thought to myself.

"Crap. I don't have enough information to go on, but I can at least stay alert. It didn't say that I was the target," I muttered under my breath.

I stayed awake the rest of the night, my mind still reeling from having read the new text and the thoughts racing through my head, but as the sun rose and the staff changed, my eyes grew heavy with tiredness, and I knew that sleep wouldn't be held back for much longer, but as soon as I started to close my eyes, a loud beeping sounded throughout room, and nurses rushed to a separate room with a crash cart.

"Someone, please help!" I heard a woman scream.

A few minutes later, the beeping stopped, and I could hear the same woman sobbing while the nurses and a doctor came out of the room all with sullen expressions. I sighed, knowing what had happened, but tried to put it out of my mind until I overheard the doctor say something.

"Miss Gakusha, I am truly sorry about your mother, but she had lived a long life," he said, obviously saddened.

It shook me to my core. That was the same name that my Diary had stated, and the prophecy that it had made had come true, but worse yet, I knew it was another Diary Holder—someone with a power like mine who had killed that woman, and if I wasn't careful, I would be their next target, but soon again, my eyes grew heavy, and my body groaned from lack of sleep, so I decided to close my eyes, if only for a minute.

"You don't have a choice. You're going to die here," the shadowy figure said.

* * *

I ran down an endless hallway, my breath ragged and my eyes straining to see into the darkness as I tried to stay away from my pursuer who, no matter how far I ran, always seemed to be right behind me.

"Why are you trying to run? You know that this is how you die," the voice said, its eerie tone seeming to wrap around me.

"No. No! I can't die here! Not yet!" I screamed as dark tendrils seemed to grab me from the shadows, the figure looming over me.

Slowly, the tendrils bound my limbs and started to cover my face. All the while, the figure stood over me, their sinister grin stretching from ear to ear, showing jagged teeth. No matter how dark it, got the figure's grin stayed there, frightening me until my vision went dark and I found myself in an endless abyss of black, falling for what seemed like entity until I met the ground.

* * *

I sat upright, my heart racing and my brow drenched with sweat. I looked around and still found myself in the hospital, doctors doing their rounds with nurses assisting. As I groaned as my leg ached. That horrid dream was still fresh in my mind. I tried to collect myself by taking deep breaths. While trying to relax, I noticed a small vase of yellow flowers and a card on the table by my bed side.

"I wonder who left these…" I mumbled to myself as I reached for the card.

'Hey, Ket. I hope you like the flowers I sent, and even though you ran out of the cafe rather quickly, I will forgive it if you help me with my homework for our art class when you feel up for it. Anyways, I hope you feel better. From your friend, Edi.'

I sighed, looking back at the flowers and shaking my head. No matter the occasion, that girl always had another motive, but it was still very nice of her to send something after only really knowing me for half a day.

While I looked over the card, an older gentleman walked up to my bedside with a small smile. He wore a long white coat, which I assumed meant that he was a doctor of sorts, and a dark blue dress shirt with gray work pants. His hair was a light gray, but well-kept and smoothed back. His face was old, covered with the wrinkles of time, but his dark green eyes seemed to be full of life. He quietly pulled out a chart and took a brief glance at it before he started to speak.

"So, I see that you're in here with a broken leg and arm young man," he said in a relaxing, yet raspy voice.

"Y-yeah, that's what I hear," I groaned as I tried to situate myself in a more respectful position.

"Well, I will be looking after you while you stay here, numb-..." The man stopped mid-sentence, his smile turning into a frown.

I panicked. It was him. This old man was number five, and the killer from my text yesterday. I steeled myself, and was ready to scream for help, but his smile returned, although it was crooked and flashed jagged teeth. Slowly, he came close to me, and I could smell some faint alcohol on his breath.

"Don't worry, number three. I won't kill you right here. There are too many witnesses," he whispered.

"I d-don't know what you're talking about," I replied shakily, my heart racing.

"You know very well what I mean, but the position that you're in now means that I can take my time. I can kill you tonight while everyone is sleeping," he hissed, his eyes lighting up.

I closed my eyes, trying to make the horrible man go away, and I was about to make a dash for freedom before a nurse called out to him.

"Dr. Wato, could you please help me with something?" the young nurse called to the man.

"Of course, dear. I was just making sure that this patient was comfy," Wato said, his happy smile quickly returning.

The doctor shuffled off towards the nurse. My eyes slowly opened and I exhaled deeply, not realizing that I was holding my breath. My heart was pounding, and my body shaking. I tried to figure out what to do with this new Diary Holder.

_I could try to escape… No, I'm too slow, even for him. I might be able to fight back… With what? My cast-covered arm? I could..._ I tried to figure something out, but my phone buzzed, making me jump slightly.

I hesitantly grabbed it, fearing the worst, but I gasped, not only in shock, but in horror. What I read shook me to my core.

"H-how could this be? I would never..." I mumbled to myself as I read the text.

_'Ketaru Fudo will destroy the 5th's diary, killing him.'_

* * *

**Holy cow. I am truly sorry that this took me so long, and I have no real excuse except for harsh writer's block, and I will try to make it up with this and then some. For those wondering when the next chapter of Let the Despair Times Roll will be coming out, worry not, for I will be working on it day in and out.**

**So, we have the introduction of the 5****th****, and he is my OC. I know it's kinda bad of me to take up one of the very few slots, but this story was made off of the idea of him and Ket fighting it to the death. What will we find out next chapter, I wonder, and will the Obituary Diary hold true? Can Ketaru kill someone with his wounds, never mind his state of mind?**

**As always, please leave your thoughts and comments on this chapter in a review, or if you want to keep them private, you can P.M. me. I love hearing what everyone has to say, good or bad and this is the final casting call, send in your OC's and let this game begin.**

**Sorry for the wait.**

**Sincerely,**

**Rin.**


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